Road to Journey to Now
by ArbyMaster458
Summary: A 12-year old Naruto meets a purple-haired kunoichi named Ayane, who shares a similar past with the blond. Wanting to be friends with her, Naruto begins telling his story to Ayane. Prequel to Naruto: Journey to Now Part 1. Several crossovers since this is a very large universe too big to comprehend.
1. Chapter 1

**Note: I've been meaning to get back to this and start everything from scratch ever since I did FIREBRAND. When I did Journey to Now, I was pretty inexperienced and the style was unfavorable. Thinking back on it, I originally wanted to make it a 3-Part story with a few spin-offs but I didn't have the idea at the time. I was simply rushing things in order to get to the bigger stuff that I wanted to explore, which was a stupid idea. So, this isn't a Part 1, this is just setting things up for Part 1. Plus, it's was Ayane's birthday on Saturday, I should at least celebrate the late birthday of my favorite Dead or Alive character by doing this.**

 **As soon as I am up for it, Journey to Now Part 1 will be launched at some point and the early story will be destroyed. Most of the chapters will stay the same, though with a lot of editing and changing here and there, make the Naruto I really want for the 458th Universe, because I already laid out a (pretty large) timeline that will connect to other stories. Chapter 1 of RTJTN, which is a short story about a 12-year old Ayane, a character from the Dead or Alive/Ninja Gaiden series, who has a lot in common with Naruto in more ways than one, murdering several bandits. I'm not sure why there isn't much stories involving crossovers between Naruto and Dead or Alive/Ninja Gaiden. I think stories about them would go really well together. Also, I find it a bit annoying how people pair Naruto with Kasumi. I like Kasumi, I really do.**

 **HOWEVER, when I was going through backgrounds of characters of DOA, I couldn't help but look into Ayane's backstory and find it similar to Naruto's, but without the giant nine-tailed fox attacking and everything. It's pretty sad stuff.** **Keep in mind, Naruto is still the main character in this, it's just that I wanted to show that JTN is a story that takes place in a (really) big universe.**

 **Unknown Bandit Hideout**

 **Night**

"Yamabe, we're back from another successful raid!" yelled a bandit, who was currently carrying a large sack of stolen goods ranging from food, to jewelry, to money alongside 3 other bandits. The man known as Yamabe was 8 feet tall, had a large diagonal scar on the right side of his face. He wore no top, leaving his hairy chest exposed, only wearing a pair of ripped, grey shorts. A large, single-edged sword rested beside him as he played cards with 7 other bandits at a large table. "Did you make sure everything was taken from them?" the man known as Yamabe asked one of the four bandits. Instead of answering him, they sported wide evil grins as they set all the goods on the table. Yamabe and the bandits he was playing with stop their game to examine the goods.

"Well done boys, the Suezo Bandits are on a roll! Yamabe yelled in victory as his fellow bandits raised their fists in the air triumphantly. "To think, we've been at this for 3 straight months! We've stolen things from Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and Kusagakure, and came out rich, and this little group got bigger!" Throughout the 3 months, the bandits found a few criminals deciding to work with them in return for making it worth their while.

"Don't forget all the small villages that we came across! Especially the ones with all those weak shinobi and beautiful women!" yelled one of the bandits, the last part implying a horrible fate for the women of the small villages. "How could I ever forget them?" Yamabe replied with a smile.

"So what's next Yamabe?" asked one of his subordinates. After thinking for a while, Yamabe says, "I think it's time we try our hand at Konoha." The bandits' eyes grow wide in surprise. "You mean it!? We're going to the Hidden Leaf Village!?"

"I think it's time we aimed bigger. Tomorrow morning, we're heading to the Leaf!"

"Alright, tonight we feast to our heart's content! And tomorrow, we-" Before Yamabe can say more, several loud explosions are heard coming from outside the hideout. "What was that!?" yelled one of the bandits. Rushing outside, Yamabe and his bandits find their fellow subordinates being slaughtered by a hooded figure as a large fire engulfs everything they worked so hard on stealing, going up in flames. The way the hooded figure moved looked inhuman as it cut down and dismembered the bandits.

The hooded figure finishes off its latest bandit by avoiding his sword and cutting the bandit's stomach open, exposing his intestines, dropping to his knees, the bandit is killed by decapitation from the hooded figure's katana. With one swipe, the blood all over the katana's blade comes out. The hooded figure turns its attention towards Yamabe and the remaining 11 bandits.

"How does it feel to lose everything you've worked so hard for?" asked the hooded figure. From the way the figure sounds, Yamabe and the remaining bandits knew right away that the figure was female.

"You're...You're just one girl!" yelled Yamabe. Saying nothing, the hooded figure pulls down her hood, revealing an angry Ayane. Taking off her cloak, Ayane reveals herself (Blossom of Miyama attire).

"You're wrong, I'm not a girl...I'm a demon," Ayane tells them, Looking down on them with cold, glowing red eyes of a killer, intimidating them. "The last small village you destroyed...you killed those children. One of them, I was planning to adopt..." Ayane told the bandits, vengeance in her voice.

"The...There's nothing to worry about! She's just one girl, we can take her." Yamabe assured.

"You can try!" Ayane yelled as she rushed at them. Three of the eleven each throw a single shuriken at her, only for the girl to catch the shurikens by the open-circle in the center of them using her katana. With one swipe, she sends the shurikens back at them, killing them when they hit them precisely in the head. Immediately, Ayane uses one of the dead bandits' body as a jump boost before performing a downward spinning slash that slices the next bandit in half.

"You bandits merely got away with your crimes with dumb luck. It's about time that luck ran out," she told them.

"What are you guys doing!? You have ninjutsu, use it!"

"You realized just now that trash like you guys can use ninjutsu? Pathetic." Angered, four of the seven remaining bandits weave handsigns for fireball jutsus while the remaining three weave hand signs for lightning jutsus. At the same time, they fire, combining their attacks. Ayane just stands there as she disperses the attack by releasing a surge of chakra from her body, shocking the bandits, Yamabe included. Adding chakra to her feet, she propels towards one of the bandits and quickly jumps behind him. The bandit attempts to backhand her, only to have the kunoichi catch his arm and break his humerus(long bone in the arm) in two, with the bone jutting out of his arm.

A bandit behind her attempts an ambush, but she quickly uses the sharp end of the bandit's arm bone to stab the bandit behind her in the neck, severing the bandit's carotid artery, instantly killing him before stabbing an explosive kunai into the broken-armed bandit's spine and kicking him towards another bandit, killing the two via explosion. One of the four remaining bandits manages to wrap a chain around Ayane's right arm, only for the 12-year old kunoichi to tug it, pulling the bandit towards her before punching him in the face with a chakra-enhanced left punch. The force of it sends the bandit's head flying off his body. By now, covered in some of her enemy's blood, she looked Yamabe straight in his eyes. Yamabe, looking at his weapon that was still in his hideout, rushes in to get it as Ayane pursues him.

The three remaining bandits attempt to stop her, only to have some of their limbs lost and their heads severed from their bodies as she quickly enters the hideout. Before she can enter, she sees Yamabe's blade waiting for her in an attempt to decapitate her, avoiding it by sliding under it before jumping and landing safely on the bandit leader's table.

"You're out of men Yamabe. Since you're the last one standing, I don't think a simple throat slit will satisfy me. I'm not even going to use my weapons to finish you." Yamabe quickly raises his large sword and performs a downward slash on the young kunoichi, who avoids it by jumping to the ceiling, infusing chakra into the soles of her feet to stick to it as Yamabe's sword splits the table in half. Finding an opening, Ayane propels herself towards Yamabe, knees first as they hit him in the face before kicking him in the chest with both her legs. Yamabe performs a diagonal swing with his blade, only for Ayane to catch it with her left hand.

"You call this a sword?" With one squeeze from her left hand, Ayane breaks the blade in half. "More like a heap of cheap iron." Right now, Yamabe was scared of the young girl. Hell, instead of just one girl, he saw a demon as the darkness made the kunoichi's natural red eyes glow brightly. Dropping to his knees, he begs to be spared and change his ways as Ayane looks down on him, disgusted by this.

"That's it? The leader of the Suezo Bandits is begging to be spared instead of fighting for his life? Sorry, but I don't intend to spare you. After all, you didn't spare those villagers." The moon is shown as Yamabe's screams are heard.

 **Unknown Location**

 **Night**

A 19-year old Ryu Hayabusa, wearing his Shinobi Shozoku attire, rests his back against a large tree as he spots a bandit blood covered Ayane walking towards him.

"You were supposed to wait for me. Instead, you disobeyed orders, lied to Genra, and went after them yourself. You could've been killed."

"So what, did you come here to drag me back to my village?" To her surprise, Ryu said no. "I understand your reasons for doing what you did, and Genra won't label you a missing-nin since he "gave" you that mission with me. Just...don't do it again. You can't always do everything on your own."

 **"I've always been on my own."** Ayane thought to herself as she walks past Ryu and enters the forest. "Where are you going?" Ryu asked. The purple-haired tells him that she's going to go bathe before going back to the Mugen Tenshin Village with him. After all, she was covered in blood.

"Actually, we're going to the Hidden Leaf Village after you're done bathing." Surprised, she turns to Ryu and asks why. "I have some business to tend to for my father, and since you're out here, Genra nominated you as a representative of the Mugen Tenshin Village."

"Why not let "the princess" do it? Or better yet, why not Hayate, his father or-" Ayane stops before she says her mother, something that Ryu takes notice of. "Master Shiden, Kasumi, and Hayate are off on a mission as we speak, so Genra and Ayame approved of you going."

"She...Ayame-sama approved?" Ryu nodded in approval. "I see...I'll be done soon." Ayane continues to go deep into the forest as Ryu waits once more. Alone, she recalls the child she was planning to adopt.

The girl was 7-years old when Ayane met her. Her name was Saya. She was an orphan who was being bullied by the other kids, only to have the kunoichi scare them off. Instead of fearing her, Saya had thanked her and gave her a warm smile. Looking down at her, the girl had reminded Ayane of herself. Always alone, keeping to herself. She had bonded with the girl, buying her lunch and just walking with her. Finally, Ayane asked Saya if she would like to get away from her village and become a part of the Mugen Tenshin Clan.

The girl happily said yes, making her smile. Before Ayane could grab her, she had spotted a large party of Yamabe's bandits from far away and went to investigate. After killing them, she came back to a burning village. Ayane had desperately tried to find the girl. To her horror, she found the girl fatally wounded by an arrow, whom she desperately attempted to save, only for her to pass away in her arms. Before she died, Saya had thanked her for being nice to her.

After reliving that memory, Ayane finally broke down crying after holding it in for so long. Wiping away her tears, she gets up, though with a little trouble, and proceeds deeper into the forest. Eventually, she comes across a waterfall. After making sure that the coast was clear, Ayane took off her clothes and cleans them thoroughly before laying them next to a rock before washing off all the blood on her, using the waterfall.

The water felt good Ayane thought to herself as she closed her eyes. She could almost get lost in the feeling as it flowed down her body. As she cleaned herself, she couldn't help but notice that her breasts had gotten a bit bigger. While glad that she wouldn't grow up flat-chested, she couldn't help but wonder how much bigger they were going to get. Her thoughts ended when she heard something, or someone enter the waterfall.

Opening her eyes, she quickly turns to see an equally naked Naruto (12-years old) staring at her in surprise, his mouth wide open and his face red. Ayane's reaction was the same as Naruto's. They stood there for a good 8 seconds before the blond spoke.

"So...it seems that you're using this waterfa-" Cutting to the waterfall, Naruto is sent flying out of it by an embarrassed but angry Ayane. He quickly recovers before avoiding several blasts of chakra from the girl, who was attempting to cover herself with her right arm as she rushed to get dressed.

Naruto quickly puts on his clothes while nearly avoiding her blasts. While avoiding them, he tried to reason with her, only to make her even madder when he mentions her breasts, saying that he was surprised that girls her age were able to have them grow that big. Fully dressed, Ayane chased after an equally dressed Naruto, her katana in hand.

"It was an accident!" Naruto yelled. Back to Ryu, he wondered what Ayane was doing. Ryu exits his thoughts when he is suddenly approached by a spiky-white-haired man, surprising him.

"Oh, Ryu, how's it been?" asked the white-haired man.

"Master Jiraiya!? You're back?" Ryu said to the man known as Jiraiya.

"Yeah, though only for a while. I'm just waiting for my apprentice to finish bathing."

"Apprentice? You have an apprentice now?" Ryu asked. "Forced to have one. He wasn't really getting along with Konoha so my sensei suggested that I take him with me on my 4-year travel and train him while I'm at it. We've been to all sorts of places like Japan, Minnesota, Texas, Florida, Virginia, Arizona, Canada, you get what I mean. We spent a lot of time in Japan."

"Was he a handful?"

"You have no idea. After all, he was 9-years old and growing. He was really something." Ryu couldn't help but chuckle a bit. Jiraiya was never good at handling kids, and the Hayabusa ninja knew it.

"...What the hell's taking Naruto so long? It shouldn't take this long to bathe." Jiraiya said out loud. Ryu couldn't help but agree with the Toad Sage. Come to think of it, Ayane said the same thing. She was going to take a quick bath and come back. So why is she...

"I think that your apprentice and Ayane have just met each other in the worst way possible," Ryu said. That said, Ryu and Jiraiya rush into the forest to find the two young shinobi.

 **"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"** Ayane expels a massive orb of roaring flame from her mouth. Naruto is hit by it and enveloped by its flames as he screams in pain. The girl's eyes widen in shock as Naruto gets angry and destroys the flames with one roar that almost sounds demonic. Several burns on his body, some that has exposed flesh, heal within seconds. With a burst of speed, Naruto closes the gap between himself and Ayane and punches the kunoichi in the face, sending her flying into a tree.

"That was my favorite jacket," Naruto said with a serious look on his face. He was originally going to try to calm her down by reasoning with her while avoiding her attacks. While trying to hold her down in one of his attempts to calm her, it triggered some sort of "traumatic episode" from her, making her more violent. After enduring and healing from several amounts of pain inflicted on him by Ayane, which included stab wounds, the severing of his tendons, and burns, Naruto had finally had it.

"I tried to reason with you but you never listen! So if you're so ready for a serious beat down, then so be it!" he yelled as he jumped to the air with his right fist raised. Ayane had survived with minor scratches and had recovered fast enough to avoid Naruto's fist, making him harmlessly punch the ground, creating a large crater and destroying three trees. The kunoichi's eyes widened from the simple display of Naruto's strength. Had she been hit by it...

 **"He's no pushover, wait...I sense that there's more to him. I'll need to finish him quickly."** Ayane thought to herself before propelling herself towards Naruto using the large branch on the tree behind her, katana ready. Naruto readies a roundhouse kick as soon as Ayane was within his range. The purple-haired kunoichi anticipates this and vaults over him, avoiding the kick and appearing behind him. Quickly infusing her katana's blade with her chakra, she turns to thrust it into Naruto's back, who quickly turns to catch the blade between his hands before breaking it. Quickly holding the broken blade in a reverse grip, Naruto attempts to stab the girl in the left shoulder, only for her to catch his arm and attempt to stab him again with her broken sword, failing once again as the blond ninja catches her hand.

"Why won't you die!?" Ayane yelled.

"Because I'm as stubborn as you!" Naruto yelled before kicking Ayane in the stomach, creating distance between the two before the blond sends the broken blade towards her like a throwing knife. She narrowly avoids it before releasing a blast of chakra from her left palm, causing the blond ninja to skid backward.

 **"This boy's good...He might give Master Ryu a hard time. My next attack has to connect."**

 **"I should try to knock this girl out with my next attack..."** At the same time, both Naruto and Ayane charge chakra into their right fists before launching themselves towards each other.

"NARUTO STOP!" Looking to his right he sees Jiraiya yelling for him to stop and that Ayane wasn't an enemy. "Wait, what?"

"AYANE, STAND DOWN!" Like Naruto, Ayane looked to her right and saw Ryu yelling at her to stop her attack.

While the two did what they were told, they forgot to stop themselves from colliding, causing them both to bump into each other and fall to the ground. The worst part of it: Naruto's lips fell on top of Ayane's, and he ended up on top of her, making the scene very suggestive to Jiraiya, who found it inspiring enough to maybe add something like this to a future title.

Realizing that her first kiss was taken by the blond ninja on top of her and that his tongue was in her mouth, Ayane pushes Naruto off as she heavily breathed, her face red. "WHA-WHA-WHAT WAS THAT!?" she yelled as she pointed at the blond.

"THAT WAS AN ACCIDENTAL KISS! I HAD NO INTENTION OF DOING THAT...But I have to admit, those lips felt nice." said an embarrassed Naruto.

"...FORGET IT, I'M KILLING HIM MASTER RYU!" Ayane yelled. Ryu had to stop Ayane by telling her once again to stand down in a serious tone that scared her a bit.

"Geez Naruto, I leave you alone for a second, and you see a girl naked, AND you ended up kissing her...Better take responsibility." Jiraiya told his apprentice before smiling.

"Oh screw off Pervy Sage!"

 **Several minutes later...**

"Now that the two of you have finally calmed down, it's time we introduced ourselves. My name is Ryu Hayabusa, a ninja from the from the Hayabusa Ninja Clan. And this is Ayane, an ally of mine from the Mugen Tenshin Clan's Hajinmon Sect. I've heard a lot about you, Naruto Uzumaki."

"Same to you, Hayabusa-san." Naruto replied, bowing to the Ultimate Ninja. When asked by Ryu to introduce herself, Ayane, still a bit angry, looks away with a "Hmph!", not looking to befriend the blond.

"Our clans are secret allies of your village, but I'm sure that Jiraiya told you about us already." Naruto replies, saying that Jiraiya did tell him that they had secret allies, he just didn't know who they were." Ryu looks at Jiraiya and tells him that he should be open to his student. "Trust me, if you knew him before, he was a real jerk this one." Ayane looks at Naruto, wondering what Jiraiya meant by Naruto being a real jerk back then.

"Well, I'm not anymore," Naruto told Pervy Sage.

"Ahem..." Noticing that he interrupted Ryu, Naruto allows the ninja to continue. "Continuing where I left off, we're on our way to Konoha for an important meeting. I had planned to talk to Jiraiya about it when I got to Konoha, since he's going to be there as well, but since he's here now," Looking at Jiraya, Ryu finishes, saying, "I'd like to discuss what sort of topics or issues Konoha has now so I can have time to decide what I'm going to say."

"Sure, I don't mind discussing things with you now. After all, I know how you don't like talking to the council, mainly to those old geezers Danzo and Homura, and that hag Koharu." Jiraiya replied. "And since you have Ayane there with you, I think it'll help if she and Naruto became friends." Hearing that Jiraiya wanted him to be friends with the girl who tried to kill him, Naruto tells the frog hermit that he'd rather take an arrow to the knee than be friends with the girl, who couldn't help but agree with the blond.

"Ayane, I think it's for the best that you make friends with him." Ryu goes on to explain how the girl tended to be a loner, going off on her own and doing things her way without listening to reason, and unwilling to trust anyone, with the exception of Ryu himself, and Hayate, a name Naruto knew nothing about. "This is an official order Ayane, so I expect you to complete it." Realizing she's backed into a corner, she sighs and tells the Hayabusa Ninja, "I'm not going to enjoy this."

 **30 minutes later...**

The two young ninjas were forced to go hunt for fish together while the two older ninjas talked. While hunting, Ayane displayed her skill in throwing kunais while Naruto displayed his skill in archery. While the two didn't say it out loud, they admitted that they were impressed with one another's skill in the long-range department. Immediately, they had a little contest to see who could get the most fish. In the end, they tied. While Naruto smiled and told the girl he had fun, Ayane denied that she had any fun and that a ninja, like herself, shouldn't be having fun, as shinobi, to her, had no time for fun. As the girl walked back to camp with the fish she caught, Naruto looked on, wondering why she said those things.

Back at camp, Ayane cooked the fish as Naruto looked from afar. He wanted to help, but when he tried to, she gave him a look that told him that she didn't want any from him. Noticing Naruto keeping his distance, Ryu walks over to the blond.

"She's a very distant girl, Ayane."

"Yeah...Is she always like this?" Naruto asked the ninja. Ryu tells Naruto that Ayane was never like the way she was now and that she was kinder when she was just 7 years old. "She's been through a lot her whole life, being seen as a demon child all her life." Naruto has a look of surprise as he looked at the girl, developing a sad look on his face. "Her mother, the wife of the current head of the Mugen Tenshin Clan was raped by her brother-in-law, Ayane's father. Her mother was too ashamed of her dishonorable conception and didn't want to care for her, so Ayane was passed into the care of the head of the Hajinmon Sect."

 **"So she's like me huh..."**

"She used to have a friend. Her half-sister, Kasumi, but after finding out the truth, she became cold, angry, jealous...I fear that she'll lose herself to her darkness eventually. That is why I need you to understand her. I've...heard about your childhood from Jiraiya."

"So you know huh..." Ryu only nodded. "Honestly, I feel as though Konoha is not worth going back to, yet I still want to go back..."

"It shows that despite having the whole village being against you, you still want to protect them, no matter what."

"They only see the monster inside me, that I understand. That's why, once I return to Konoha, I'm going to show them that I'm not the fox they see, I'm Naruto Uzumaki." Underneath the mask, Ryu couldn't help but smile at Naruto's words.

"By the way, can I see what you look like under the mask?" Instead of answering yes or no, Ryu pulls down his mask, surprising Naruto. "Wow, I'm sure that any girl would swoon over you."

Pulling his mask back on, Ryu says, "That's why you'll mostly see me with my mask on."

 **2 hours later...**

As Jiraiya and Ryu slept, Naruto woke up, not feeling tired and wanting to go off on his own to explore the forest and take his mind off the fact that he's going back to the village that hates him. While Naruto wanted to go back simply to prove to the villagers that he was on their side, he also had some form of friends there, though he considered them acquaintances at best. As he exited his thoughts, he noticed Ayane sitting by herself on top of a rock. Sneaking in order to get closer, Naruto sees something he rarely saw any girl do: Cry.

"Ayane..." Looking behind her, a surprised but teary-eyed Ayane saw Naruto and realized that he caught her in her most vulnerable state, Ayane wipes away her tears and "angrily" asks what he wanted.

"I was just minding my own business when I saw a girl that almost killed me ball her eyes out alone." Blushing, Ayane tells Naruto that she wasn't crying. "Then what were you doing?"

"...I'm going back to-"

"Stop...I think it's time you finished Hayabusa-san's "mission", Naruto said to the girl. "He told me about you. About your childhood...We're the same, you and I." This surprised Ayane, who was left unaware of Naruto's history. "Since I know about you, I think you should take the time to know me." While Ayane wanted to simply not listen and get back to camp, something about what Naruto said had compelled her to sit with the blond and hear what he had to say.

"Fine, I guess I'll listen to your story," Ayane replied. "Not because I want to be friends with you, but because it's a mission from Master Ryu."

"Fair enough," Naruto said with a smile, earning a blush from Ayane.

"Let's start at the beginning, to when I was 8." With that, Naruto's tale began.

* * *

 **When doing Journey to Now, I never realized how amateurish I've been with the execution of it, mainly in Naruto and the writing style is was too comfortable with. Because of that, I had to reconsider the continuation of it. With Road to Journey to Now, more things will be established, and or retconned, and yadda yadda. This serves as a reboot of it all that I hope viewers can read and enjoy.**

 **On Ninja Gaiden/Dead Or Alive, the character Ayane was a character only Naruto would be able to relate to and understand, given the near-similar backgrounds. With Naruto, he could be the one to hopefully change her. From here on, their friendship/relationship will be established.**

 **For** **the chapters of Journey to Now, they will still be there, I just need to split the story in a three-parter, this being a prequel and not part of it. I'll have to rewrite everything and add in more to it, and then slowly delete each old chapter as I continue writing the more revised ones.**

 **Since it has several crossovers, it'll be in the Naruto section of FF, maybe in the one with Naruto x Ninja Gaiden or Dead Or Alive, since it's Naruto telling Ayane his past. Plus I don't think a lot of people would check Naruto x X-Overs.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Several years ago**

 ** _"Hey, there he his, the demon."_**

 ** _"Why does the Hokage keep someone like him in the village?"_**

 ** _"He should've never been born."_**

 ** _"Honey, don't associate yourself with that kid. He's a monster."_**

Those sort talks behind his back were annoying to the 8-year old blond as he ate his ramen. At first, he was not okay with it, saddened even, it eventually became bothersome as he got older. As usual, Naruto kept to himself, trusting only the owner of the ramen shop and his daughter, the Third Hokage, and his "guardian". Finishing his bowl, he paid for his meal before he left, though not before saying thanks to the ramen shop owner and his daughter. Everywhere he looked, people, even kids, looked at him with hate and contempt.

 **"Honestly, these villagers can just go off and die in a mission for all I care. It's not like I'll miss them. After all, who in this village will give a damn if I were to die?"**

 **Umino Residence**

Instead of socializing with the other kids, Naruto would be reading his books, playing video games, watching anime and American TV shows, and training by himself. He had no need to go outside since his guardian would usually bring what he wanted or needed to him. Right now, Naruto was watching the news as he tinkered with some device, listening to how "Earth Mightiest Heroes" saved the day once again. To the blond, he was envious of the heroes on TV. Being praised, saving the day, being noticed...

 **Present**

"Really? You're an Avengers fan?" asked Ayane. She was well aware of the superheroes in America. She knew how strong they were, which was why she never dared to go against any of them. While she considered the heroes there strong, she was no fan of them at all. Mainly since they wore tights to do their job. Ayane wore shinobi gear, but it was because she was no hero, she was a ninja first, and a hero never.

"Yeah, I like The Avengers. I look up to them, and I'm inspired by them to be a hero, it's just...I never thought of myself as a hero until I saved "her".

"Her?" Ayane asked, raising a brow.

"Let me continue my tale. You'll eventually know who I mean."

 **Past**

"Not going out to play again Naruto?" Looking up, he sees Iruka smiling at him as he held bags of groceries in his hands. Three years ago, Iruka had been chosen to watch after Naruto by the Third Hokage himself, the former not wanting to take care of the "Monster who killed his parents". Despite his protest against it, The Third Hokage made him the blond's guardian anyways. When the kid first appeared at his apartment, the two barely said anything to each other.

Naruto, like he was now, kept to himself, while Iruka just ignored him. At some point, Iruka injured himself while cooking. Annoyed at Iruka's cooking, the blond had to push him aside and cook for the both of them. To his surprise, Iruka found that he was an amazing cook and had complimented him. Though surprised at being praised, Naruto brushed it aside and went on being his usual self. Slowly, as time passed, both him and Iruka got used to each other, eventually having a chat about what they liked and disliked. Once he was 7, they were a bit open with each other, with Iruka making Naruto swear to be honest with one another, the latter begrudgingly accepting it. To Iruka's surprise, he soon found out about the kid's intelligence, as well as his self-developed skills in simple fighting styles. When asked how a kid like him could know a lot at his age, Naruto simply said, "I had to mature on my own. After all, I had no parents to teach me how to be a kid."

Hearing Naruto say that saddened him. To see him grow from a boy who asked why the village hated him to being the boy who didn't care what people said about him or feel hurt about it. Not wanting him to be the way he was, Iruka had enrolled him to the academy. While he had two of the admission requirements, "Have a mind that will not yield and be able to endure hard training and work" and "Be healthy in mind and body", Naruto did not love the village, nor did he have the intention of helping preserve the village's peace and prosperity. With the Third Hokage's approval, he was enrolled into the academy.

It had been over a year now since Naruto took classes there. He excelled in his work, both mentally and physically, being on par with Sasuke Uchiha, whom the blond hated due to him getting the attention of all his peers and fellow students. No matter what he did, they never looked at him the way they did Sasuke.

"Why? I don't have any friends. Besides, I can work on my own stuff in peace."

"I see..." Looking at the TV, Iruka notices Iron Man being interviewed on TV before looking back at Naruto. "You obviously want to help people, yet you're unwilling to help those who hate you."

"Why should I give a damn about people who hate me for no reason at all?" he asked.

"Hey, language..." Frowning, Naruto gave Iruka a dollar. "I understand you not wanting to help the people who hate you...But I think you should reconsider." When asked why, Iruka said, "Because that's what a true hero would do." Naruto simply said nothing about it and decided to get up and prepare for dinner. As he left to go cook, Iruka continued to watch the news Naruto was watching. This time, it was Captain America thanking Spider-Man for helping them, and how, despite being hated, he saved people, and that he was the true hero today.

"If only Naruto took up to you Spider-Man..."

At dinner, Naruto and Iruka ate in silence, simply because neither one of them had anything to talk about. He was Naruto's classroom teacher, so he couldn't talk to him about classes or grades since he already knew that he was doing well. Finally, Iruka spoke.

"Naruto, I think you should spend the rest of the day outside after class." When Naruto asked why Iruka simply said that opportunities and good change can come to him and that he'd have to find it.

"As if I'd find any sort of thing like that in this village," Naruto replied.

"...How about a bet?" Naruto raised a brow, wondering what sort of thing Iruka has planned in his sleeves. "If you don't find anything interesting that changes you, I'll get you a new video game."

"A new video game huh...What do you get if I do find it?"

"You're treating us both to ramen the next time we go to Ichiraku," Iruka replied, surprising Naruto. "But I'm saving up money for-"

"Ohhh, are you scared?" Iruka asked with a smile.

"I'm not scared! In fact, I'll do your stupid challenge. But I'll tell you this, nothing good will come tomorrow."

 **The next day...**

"Again...Again! How does that kid match Sasuke!?" yelled a pink-haired girl, pointing at Naruto as she asked the question out loud. Today was shuriken practice, and the students were lined up for their turns. Sasuke, as usual, went up first, scoring a perfect, and then Naruto went after, getting the same score as Sasuke.

"Maybe because I try? Is that a good answer for you, Suckura?" Angry, the girl known as Sakura attempted to hit him, only for the blond to effortlessly dodge her attacks as usual, with Iruka having to talk her down.

"That kid must've cheated."

"That must be it. Maybe Iruka-sensei's helping him."

"Tch, same old same old," Naruto said to himself.

"Good...Good job, Naruto." A bit surprised, Naruto looked around, wondering who said that.

 **"Was it just my imagination?"** he thought before continuing his lessons.

 **Lunch Time**

As his usual spot, the swings attached to the tree, Naruto sat down as he ate his cup ramen. He had no one to talk to or eat with, but it was fine. He was used to it after all.

"Ex...Excuse me." Looking to his left, he sees a girl his age, the girl had dark blue hair that she kept in a hime-cut that was short, kept just above her forehead with chin-length strands framing her face. Her eyes were featureless white eyes with tinges of lavender in them.

"What is it?" Naruto rudely asked the girl. Was she another one of Sasuke's "fans"?

"I've...noticed that you...You...eat alone." said the girl. Naruto simply said that he was fine with it. "...Can I eat my lunch with you?" A bit cautious, Naruto asked why. The girl simply said that she just wanted to eat with the lonely blond and that they were students of Iruka's class.

"Why not start a fight with those Sasuke fangirls?" Naruto asked.

"Because I want to...sit...with you." The last part made the girl blush, confusing the blond.

"...I don't care, do what you want." Happy, the girl rested her back against the tree as she dug into her lunch. Naruto simply watched her eat a bit before resuming his lunch. The two said nothing to each other as they finished their respective lunch. Immediately, Naruto got up and threw away his empty ramen cup as the girl followed him and did the same with her lunch.

"See you in class I guess..." Naruto said before walking away.

"Hinata..."

"Huh?"

"My name is Hinata Hyuga..." said the girl. "If you'll allow me...I'd like to eat lunch with you again." Finishing, Hinata looked down in order to hide her red face.

"...I already told you, I don't care, do what you want." Surprised by this, Hinata watched as Naruto walked back to class.

 **Classroom**

As a lecture was going on, Naruto wrote whatever information would be helpful to know. While doing so, he could feel all eyes on him from a large majority of the students in the class.

 **"There's a lesson going on in class, pay attention to that instead of some kid who's trying to learn..."** As Naruto continued jotting down notes, Hinata watched from across the class. But she wasn't watching because she hated him, but to understand why everyone was looking at him like some unwanted ice cream flavor.

 **After School**

Getting out, Naruto voiced how glad he was that it was over. Looking at the students going out to hang and have fun together, his eyes narrowed. Having no friends, Naruto decided to go off and train by himself today. That was until he noticed three boys a year older than him asking Hinata to come with them. Curious, he decided to trail them.

 **Behind the academy**

"Hey, we need money to go play at the arcade as usual. Pay up." the first boy. Being a daughter of the Head of the Hyuga Clan, Hinata was rich. Because of this, boys like the three that were in front of her forced her to give them her allowance. As usual, she tried to tell them no. Sadly, it ended with her being unable to say it, with one of the boys pushing her down and taking her allowance.

"N-N-N-..." Again, she couldn't say it.

"What? What was that? N-N-N-" said the second boy, who simply laughed at the Hyuga girl. "Just give it to us. After all, your family's rich so you don't have to worry about losing it."

"And what if she doesn't want to give you any to a bunch of bullies?" Turning around, the three boys see Naruto glaring at them. "Oh, it's the blond kid no one in the village likes. Beat it, or we'll have to beat you." said the first boy.

"Are you taking money from a rich kid, simply because she can afford things, or because your parents won't give you an allowance since you three are obviously a bunch of spoiled kids?" Naruto said in a mocking tone, angering them. Deciding to teach him a lesson, the three boys decide to beat up Naruto. That would be a mistake they would never forget.

Hinata could only watch in surprise as Naruto beats up the boys with little effort as he continuously mocked them. After 3 minutes of fighting, he had defeated them without a scratch, and without breaking a sweat. "I'd pay you three for trying, but you're not worth it." Having said that, Naruto finished by telling them, "Now listen well, Hinata Hyuga is not going to give you any more money to you stooges. If you even think of trying this stunt again, I'll break your legs." Scared, the three boys run away crying.

Turning to Hinata, he asked if she was okay. To his surprise, the girl started crying before hugging the blond and constantly saying thank you to him. A few minutes later, having calmed down, Naruto sat with the girl behind the academy. He could've left her to cry, but he felt compelled to sit with Hinata and make sure she was okay, just in case those boys came back.

"I've had trouble with being assertive ever since I was 5. I hoped that by going to the academy, I could maybe change myself. But...I guess nothing has changed."

"Seems like it," Naruto replied.

"Neji nii-san encouraged me to come here, hoping that it'd help me."

"I just came here because our teacher's my guardian and that I could become a good ninja. Nothing more, nothing less." Curious, Hinata asked Naruto why he came to save her. "You were in trouble, that's why."

"Well, thank you," Hinata replied. Hearing this, Naruto told her how annoyed he was with her saying thank you to him, having already told him that as she was crying a few minutes ago, causing her to blush in embarrassment.

"S-Sorry..."

"Whatever, I have to go." Getting up, Naruto prepared to leave. Before he could, he felt Hinata tug on his shirt. "What is it now?"

"Be my friend!"

"...Huh?"

"We should be friends! Me and you!" Hinata yelled.

"Why would you want me as a friend?" Naruto asked, with Hinata telling him that she just wanted to. She didn't need any other reason.

"I'm not looking to make friends Hinata."

"...That's fine." This seemed to surprise Naruto. "Whether you like it or not, we're students of Iruka's. We should be getting along, me and you. You look so alone every time I saw you in class, and I wanted to change that. I wanted to approach you, but I couldn't. Today was the first time I finally talked to you, even see that you can care about others. Because of today, I've decided to make you my friend." Having said all that, Hinata realized what she did and blushed once more.

Naruto said nothing after a few seconds before sighing and telling her, "Geez, to tell yourself nothing about you has changed, what the hell was that just now?" Surprised by his comment on her little burst of assertiveness, Hinata smiled as the blond left.

 **Present**

"Wow, you were like that?" Ayane asked, surprised. **"So that's what he meant by you being a real jerk..."**

"Yeah, but I changed how I spoke to her...eventually. I mean, she's my friend now, maybe even my best friend..."

"How did it go when you went home?" Smiling, Naruto told her that it was a surprise.

 **Past**

 **Umino Residence**

Arriving home, Naruto finds Iruka with a huge smile on his face. Realizing why, he says, "You saw, didn't you?"

"I may be against you beating up kids, but you saved Hinata," said Iruka, with Naruto telling him that the academy was bad at not knowing about it and helping the Hyuga girl.

"Yeah, you're right...Those boys' parents came to me and told me about what you did."

"They did huh?"

"They wouldn't stop telling me to bring you over to them so they could give you a piece of their mind but I made sure they knew that those boys were the ones in the wrong." Looking at the table in the living room, Naruto notices a bag on top of it. When asked what it was, Iruka said that it was his new video game, to the boy's surprise.

"I thought I'd have to pay for the next time we went out for ramen."

"I know, but I thought about it and decided to reward you for what you did today." Hearing this, Naruto thanked Iruka before going to prepare dinner. "How did it feel to help her?"

"...It was alright," he replied before entering the kitchen. Peeking over, Iruka noticed something truly rare: Naruto smiling. He never smiled at all until now. Iruka concluded that Naruto felt good about helping Hinata.

 **"And I thought we both promised to be honest with each other. I guess I'll let it slide..."**

 **Present**

"Taking everything I've told you as of now...I found out after spending time with Hinata that it takes just one chance meeting to change someone as uncaring as me, with time and effort. No matter how many times I denied and rejected her friendship, she somehow got to me, way more than Iruka or the Third Hokage, even Old Man Teuchi and his daughter ever could. I became the me you see now." he told Ayane. In her mind, she felt a sort of change in her as Naruto told his story.

"One chance meeting huh..." Noticing this, Naruto smiles as he asked if she had a change in her just now.

"What? Not at all...Although that is an interesting story..." she replied as she looked away in order to hide her flushed face.

"Well, I told you what I wanted you to know. Telling you this, I'm sure that you'll change. Heck, maybe now we can be friends?"

"Allies for sure. Friends? You've got a long ways to go." Accepting her answer, Naruto gets up before telling her that they should get back to camp.

"No." Naruto looked at her in surprise. "I want to hear more of your stories. It's 9:45 at night, and I'm sure that you can tell me everything about you in three hours." Giving her a smile, the blond sits back down and decides to continue his story.

* * *

 **So Naruto has finally met Hinata, though he was pretty against a friendship with her. Come on, why would anyone want to be friends with him?**

 **Naruto's overall personality in the past, as of now, was mostly antisocial. He hated the villagers who hate him back. The only ones he was somewhat okay with were the Third Hokage, the only reason why he's still in the village, and Iruka, who originally hated Naruto but grew to care for him as a proper guardian, though he rarely saw the blond smile until now.**

 **From the TV news about The Avengers, Naruto truly aspires to be a hero, but only save those who don't hate him, which is truly unhero like. As a hero, even if there are those who hate you, only you can change them. Look at Rocky IV, Rocky went to Russia to fight Ivan Drago, with the crowd being against Rocky at first, until he changed their minds about him. In the end, he said, "If I can change, and you can change, then _everybody_ can change!", which applies to Naruto.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Past**

Several months had passed since Naruto saved Hinata from those three boys. The next day, he found her waiting for him so they could enter the academy together. Day after that, she had asked to hang out outside of the academy, with Naruto agreeing because he had nothing better to do, going shopping with her, watching a movie together, and eating at Ichiraku, with Old Man Teuchi thinking that she was his girlfriend, earning a blush from the blue-haired girl and an annoyed look from Naruto. After that, he was more willing to let Hinata sit with him during lunch. He even stopped telling her that he didn't care and to do what she wanted, instead, simply saying sure, okay, and alright.

Two weeks after that, Hinata visited Naruto at Iruka's place to hang out with the blond, finding out about his aspirations to be a hero after seeing him watch the news about superheroes like The Avengers and the X-Men being praised. Later that night, she had played Super Smash Bros. Melee with him, with the former actually proving herself as a challenge to Naruto. To actually have someone to play with that gave him a challenge made the blond openly smile. To Hinata, she found it cute, though she didn't say it out loud. Seeing this smiling Naruto, the Hyuga girl urged him to be like he was now from now on, telling him not as a fellow student, but as his friend.

From there, Naruto's overall personality completely changed. He was smiling more, no longer the overall serious and antisocial person he was. Though he was still the same Naruto at the academy, it was with a bright and fun personality. The students who saw this change in him were a bit freaked out and wondered if he hit his head on something. As the days went by, he became friendlier towards her, no longer calling her annoying and listening to what she says.

 **Naruto's 9th Birthday**

 **Academy**

"Naruto?"

"Hmm?"

"Today's your 9th birthday, right?" asked Hinata. He simply answered with a yeah.

"...You don't sound excited about it. Why?" Naruto went on to tell her how no one other than the Third Hokage and Iruka had ever come for his birthday. He considered his birthday as meaningless and not with celebrating.

"Besides, it's the day my parents died, and the day the Nine-Tailed Fox attacked the village."

 **Present**

"I never knew who my parents were. I grew up without knowing what it was like to receive the love of a mom and dad. I keep asking myself and others who my parents were, only to get nothing." Ayane couldn't help but have a look of sadness towards the blond. Hell, she was feeling how he felt, not knowing what it was like to be loved by her own mother, wishing she could experience it.

"I told Hinata if I had one wish, it'd be to one day get out of Konoha and start fresh. Live somewhere out of the ninja nation and live as an ordinary person, going to school and getting a job I liked. Simple life."

"How did she react to it?"

 **Past**

"Do you still want to leave?" asked Hinata.

"I still do. If that opportunity presents itself, I'll gladly take it and get as far away from this place as possible. After all, why would I stay in a village where nearly everyone hates me?" Hearing this from Naruto, she felt sad.

"I'd miss you..." she replied.

"I know...But you can come with me if you wanted to."

Hearing this, Hinata said, "I'd go anywhere with you." This surprised both him and the girl, who immediately turned red in embarrassment. Smiling, Naruto told her that she was a good friend, maybe even his best friend and that he appreciated her for not giving up on him when they first met.

"Can I ask you something? It's very important."

"What is it?"

"...Do you think this village and the people of this village are worth saving? Way before I knew you, Iruka told me how a true hero would save those who hated them, I don't understand. All my life, I only saw anger and hatred from the villagers. They called me a monster, got their kids to hate me too when I did nothing to them, and tell me to go die somewhere. Why save them after shunning me?"

"...I understand how you feel Naruto. I see what you go through every day, enough to make me angry."

"But..."

"But even if I feel that way...should the village be under attack, and these people are in danger and need to be rescued, I'd save them regardless of how I feel," Hinata answered without hesitation in her voice. "You don't need a reason to save them, only because it's the right thing to do. A true hero puts up with it and saves people, even the ones who hate them, for truly...their actions can change the hearts of those who used to hate or reject them. Like the heroes you aspire to be, only you can change how the people of Konoha see you by earning it. It all starts with how you go about it. I think that's something you never understood, even if it was in front of you." Even Hinata would save those who hated him. He wanted to disagree with her, yet...why did her answer feel so right?

"You've ummm...You've given me a lot to think about..."

"Take your time Naruto..." Hinata said with a gentle smile.

"I swear, you're rubbing off on me."

 **An hour later...**

"Are you sure we should approach him Choji? I feel like it's a drag trying to be friends with him. When he first entered our class, he was a real jerk, though not as much as Sasuke."

"It's worth trying Shikamaru. He's changed a lot since Hinata became friends with him."

"But what if he's unfriendly towards us like he is with the rest of us?"

"Ahem!" The boys known as Shikamaru and Choji stopped as they turned to see Naruto looking at them, with his arms crossed. "Can you two move? I need to go use the bathroom." Complying, both boys moved out of the way as Naruto walked past them and made his way down the stairs and out of the classroom.

"I told you it was a drag," Shikamaru told his friend.

"How about we ask Hinata? She's his friend."

"You still want to try and be his friend?" he asked. Choji admits to Shikamaru that the whole not making friends with Naruto and ignoring him felt wrong to him, but did it because everyone else was doing so. It made him feel like a bad person, and that was someone Choji didn't want to be. Sighing, Shikamaru gives in and walks with Choji to see Hinata going around and asking students to come to Naruto's birthday party. Like everyone she asked, they laughed and denied the request, making her sad.

Seeing this, Shikamaru and Choji walk towards Hinata and tell her that they'd like to come to his birthday.

"Re-Really?" Choji gave her a smile and a thumbs up while Shikamaru simply said "Sure." Thankful, Hinata bows to them in respect before going off to ask more students.

"I wonder how this party's going to go?" Choji tells his friend that he hopes the food there is nice, earning a sigh from Choji.

Having finished asking Shino if he'd come, who responded with a simple yes, Hinata decided to ask Ino. Last month, she and Sakura found out that they loved Sasuke, which ended with the two ending their friendship in order to become love rivals. To end it over a boy, the Hyuga girl found it ridiculous.

She didn't want to invite her, but after seeing Ino all by herself, Hinata felt a bit sorry for her. Mustering the courage and letting out a sigh, she approached the girl and asked if she could come to Naruto's birthday.

"Naruto? That kid who always has that angry look on him?" she asked.

"He's changed a lot since I became his friend. Naruto's really nice," she assured the Yamanaka girl. "He's never had a real birthday in his entire life, and I want to make sure he gets one tonight. It'll mean a lot to me and him if you could come."

"...I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm going."

"I see...Okay, I understand. I guess I'll be the only girl there. It's not like-"

"Whoa hold on...The other girls in the class said no?" she asked, with Hinata answering yes. "That is so wrong. Having only one girl at a party is a crime! Because of that, I've changed my mind, I'm going." Hearing this make the Hyuga girl happy as she hugged Ino and thanked her.

"What's going on here?" Looking behind her, Hinata sees Naruto sporting a confused expression on his face. Blushing, she lets go of Ino and tells him that nothing was going on. "Then why were you hugging Ino?"

"Because she...needed one?" Naruto said nothing as he went back to his seat.

 **Present**

"A true hero who saves everyone no matter how much hate they're given. To hear that they didn't need a reason to save them other than it being the right thing to do...I couldn't agree with her. I wouldn't...but a part of me believed it."

"...It was the same for me." Naruto looked at Ayane with surprise. "Like you, I didn't consider my clan to be worth saving. Yet, I'm still there, and a few people from my clan have grown to accept me."

"You're really something you know..." Ayane yawned as Naruto said that. When asked if she was tired, the girl brushed it off and told the latter that it was nothing and that she can still listen to his story.

"If you say so...Later that day, thanks to the part of me that wanted to believe Hinata, I saved a puppy for someone I hated while she prepared a surprise birthday party for me."

 **Past**

 **Hyuga Residence**

"A surprise birthday party?"

"Yes, Naruto's birthday is today," Hinata told Neji about her friendship with the blond 3 weeks ago. While he was skeptical of the friendship between the two, he nonetheless supported it. Like his cousin, he didn't hate Naruto for no reason at all. If there was a reason to, he needed proof or a reason to hate him.

"It'd be nice if you could come too, Neji nii-san. I think you and him can be good friends."

"Sorry, I can't come. I'm going over to Tenten's to tutor her." Having been told of his plans, Hinata tells her cousin that he's been going over to her place for a while. Curious, she asks him why he's been going to her house for the past two months.

"Well...Because..." Neji was sweating a bit as he tried to form a sentence. In truth, her cousin had developed a crush on Tenten. The reason for him going to her place was to not only help her study but to get closer to the girl and maybe develop something deep between them.

"It's okay Neji nii-san, I know why you're going. But, if you finish early, can you come?" After thinking about it and seeing Hinata looking at him with a demanding an answer expression on her face that tugged on his heartstrings, he promised her that he'd try to finish early, earning a smile from her. He swore that cuteness was a dangerous weapon that girls and women use to make guys do their bidding.

 **Konoha Forest**

 **Evening**

Having finished his training, Naruto decided to return home after feeling a drop of rain fall on his head.

 **"To think that it'd rain on my birthday. Oh well, not like anyone's going to be there, other than Iruka as usual."** As he prepared to rush home, he heard a cry for help. Going towards it, he saw a girl from his class yelling for help as she cried. Her puppy had fallen into a fast moving river and she couldn't swim to save her pet.

"Just walk away Naruto. There's no way in hell that I'm helping someone like her. It's her problem..." Adamant in his decision, Naruto proceeded to leave, though that was before he heard her cries getting louder and desperate.

 **"I shouldn't...Why would I anyway?"**

Seeing as no one was coming to help, the girl accepted the reality that no one would help her puppy. That is until Naruto jumped into the river and swam towards it. In his mind, he wondered why he jumped into the river. His body just moved on its own. The water was cold as hell, but he didn't care, he just kept swimming. Finally, Naruto caught the puppy and got out of the water as the girl ran towards Naruto, who made sure to check if the girl's pet was okay.

"Why...Why did you save my puppy? I said horrible things to you, called you a monster." she asked.

"I don't know myself. For all I care, I could've let you be and went home. Yet...I couldn't help but answer your call for help." Hearing Naruto's answer, the girl was moved by his selfless act. Grateful, the crying girl thanked him, with the puppy happily barking.

Naruto had helped walk the girl and her puppy home, her parents glad that they made it home safely. However, when they saw Naruto, they angrily asked why he was with her. When the girl told them about what he did, the parents were surprised, though not accepting of his heroic act. This he was cool with. While the parents weren't accepting, he managed to change the girl's views of him.

Walking away, Naruto thought about what he did. It was just a simple pet rescue, and he felt...happy about it. Just that simple act of kindness towards someone who hated him...To be thanked by her warmed his heart. Naruto would keep this to himself so he wouldn't be lectured by Iruka about how dangerous it was for him to jump into a river like that. He would not hear the end of it.

 **Umiko Residence**

Once inside the apartment, Naruto was surprised by Iruka, Hinata, and her cousin Neji, who yelled "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" to him. What's more, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka, and Shino Aburame had arrived to celebrate his birthday as well.

"Who...What-"

"You weren't expecting us?" asked a lightly smiling Shikamaru. "I know what you're going to say, "I don't know you guys, why are you here, and why did you show up now?" Basically, Choji and I wanted to be friends with you, but back then, you were..."

"You were pretty unapproachable, like Sasuke." Naruto frowned when Choji compared him to Sasuke.

"Thanks, Choji...Anyways, following the months that passed, we saw you in a different light, thanks to your friend Hinata. When you left to go to the bathroom, Hinata went to every student in the classroom and asked them to go celebrate your birthday. So...this is it."

"I only came here because having one girl at your party is bad," Ino added.

"We also came here to apologize for making you feel like not everyone in the class, save for Hinata, cared about you so...can we stay for the party? Maybe become...friends?" asked Shikamaru.

"...This is...I don't know what to make of this. Hinata went and invited students I don't even know, and Ino, one of Sasuke's fangirls, is here so Hinata wouldn't be the odd one out..." At first, everyone thought that he'd hate how some of the students he didn't know were here, only to breathe a sigh of relief and form happy smiles on their faces once he said, "This...This is a far better surprise than any present I've ever received. You guys can stay, just...be more willing to approach me next time." Smiling, the blond thanked them for coming before celebrating his birthday.

 **Present**

That birthday, it was no longer me and Iruka. It was livelier than the other ones. Truly one that I would never forget. I became fast friends with Shikamaru, Choji, Shino, and Neji. Ino...she kept to herself and only hung out with Hinata. I did talk to her a bit, only to ignore her when she started worshiping Sasuke. Iruka, he just sat around with that huge smile on his face and minded his own business. As for the cake, it was very delicious."

"I never celebrated any of my birthdays. Never had the time or the need to."

"Well let me know your birthday and I can help you celebrate it properly. You could even drop by and I'll make sure your birthdays are the best." The purple-haired kunoichi blushed when he told her he wanted to help celebrate it.

"Just...continue the story."

 **Past**

 **Umiko Residence**

"HOW!?" yelled Naruto as Shikamaru got first place while he got in second place in Mario Kart.

"I've been playing this way longer than you Naruto," Shikamaru replied. Walking over to them, Neji asked if he could try playing as Hinata came over and asked to play as well. Naruto voiced how bad of an idea it was to let her play video games. When the Branch House Hyuga asked why it was a bad idea for Hinata to play, the boys learned it the hard way when she beat them 10 times in a row in Mario Kart's Battle Mode.

"Because she's a natural..."

"Hey I want to try as well!" yelled Ino. Shino simply stayed quiet and watched as everyone gathered to play. Seeing Shino feeling left out, the birthday boy decided to strike up a conversation with him.

"Not enjoying the party?" he asked. Shino assured him that the party was fine, there's just one problem.

"I've never played video games before," he answered.

"Do you want to try? I can teach you." Shino said nothing when Naruto offered to help the dark glasses wearing boy fit in. An hour later, Shino had found himself playing alongside the others as Naruto watched with enthusiasm.

Soon, it was time for everyone to go. The rain had stopped, and the kids slowly left one by one until only Hinata and Neji remained. Finally, it was time for them to leave as well. Naruto had thanked Hinata for inviting people over to know them better. He was looking forward to seeing all of them at the academy tomorrow. Before going, Neji had thanked the blond for being Hinata's friend.

"I hope that we can know each other a lot better. Maybe even spar when we get older."

"I would like that a lot Naruto Uzumaki."

As soon as Neji and Hinata left, it was just him and Iruka. When asked if he enjoyed his birthday, Naruto told him that it was better than the last birthdays he had.

"I'll probably have to get Hinata a large present for hers when it comes up..."

"She has been a huge influence on you huh?" said Iruka.

"Yeah...these past few months...they've been enjoyable...Not so lonely. It makes me feel..."

"Happy?"

"No...Hopeful. Yeah, I still want to leave this village, but still keep this feeling inside. That is why, I'm going to change how this village sees me, by showing them who I really am." Iruka could only smile and ruffle the blond's hair, surprising the latter.

"I swear, you sound really old." Naruto only chuckled when Iruka said that. "Well, don't worry about chores tonight. I'll take care of it."

"Thanks, I'll just head to bed now."

 **Present**

"So that was the day you decided to prove yourself to the village?"

"Yeah...4 weeks after my birthday, I finally had my chance to leave the village, not to get away from it, but to explore the outside world and learn new things and get stronger along the way. I spent so much time training with strong people and creating my own techniques in order to be where I am. I even studied advanced machinery and magic, but that's a story of its own entirely I don't think you'd be interested in."

"Was it 4 weeks later that you met Jiraiya?" Naruto simply nodded. "I was wondering when you'd introduce that perverted sage." He chuckled when Ayane started to call Jiraiya a perverted sage.

"I would tell you now, but I'm seriously getting tired."

"Wait...WHAT!?" she yelled.

"I may not look like it, but I haven't slept for half day yesterday and all of today. I've been constantly training and honing my skills until morning to make sure that I was in top shape for when I get back to Konoha. I've also been running non-stop for 5 hours straight, drinking coffee so I could keep going."

"So when we fought, you weren't at full strength!?"

"Pretty much. Had I rested before we fought, I would have...beaten...you." In an instant, Naruto had fallen asleep. Ayane wanted to wake him up and take him back to camp, but she was starting to feel tired as well. She too didn't get much sleep. She only wanted to stay awake a bit more so she could listen to the blond's "origin story". But seeing as "Mr. Storyteller" had fallen asleep, that wasn't going to happen, at least not tonight.

"You're finishing your story when we wake up you hero worshiping jerk." Blushing, Ayane decided to lay next to the blond, too fatigued to move anymore. She hoped that he didn't do anything funny to her in her sleep.

* * *

 **In this chapter, Naruto has never had a good birthday. There was cake and balloons, but it was just him and Iruka, with the Third Hokage rarely appearing. When it comes to birthdays, it's really sad to barely have anyone celebrating it with you. Naruto had Iruka, yes, but that was it. To have a birthday where you have several people come to celebrate it is a pretty wonderful feeling, and to give Naruto that feeling that his birthday is important to celebrate like the other kids, it's a pretty nice moment for him, enough that no presents were needed.**

 **The part where he saved a puppy from drowning was from a Filler Arc in Naruto Shippuden that I used as reference. To help that unknown girl in his class rescue her pet is a pretty defining moment for him because he then understands what Iruka and Hinata meant by what a true hero does: Helping people, even the ones who hate you. This helps Naruto decide that he's going to change the village's views on him, which will define him in the long run. This was mainly inspired by My Hero Academia and Spider-Man, where Izuku found himself saving Bakugo from that slime monster and Spidey being the hero he is despite being seen as a menace to others.**

 **As you've read from the other chapters, Naruto was a real jerk when he first enrolled at the academy. He gave people looks that told them to keep their distance, and that really scared students a bit. Having changed in personality after befriending Hinata, some of the students, mainly Shikamaru, Choji, Shino, and Ino decide maybe he's not such a bad guy now, he may be approachable, though they weren't sure of how to go about it, having kept their distance from him for so long, mainly since everyone in the village did the same thing. For Neji, he's** **there because he promised Hinata that he'd come. In here, Neji is like he was after the Chunin Exams Arc, having been informed of Hizashi's sacrifice early instead of having it being kept from him until he was older. He also has a crush on Tenten, who will make an appearance at some point in Part 1.**

 **To have Hinata tell him what a true hero would do is another important factor. Like Hajime and Chiaki from Danganrompa, I wanted a moment like this to happen between the two. If he wasn't going to listen to Iruka, the only other person he'd listen to would be Hinata. I forgot to flesh it out earlier but Hinata has not developed any feeling towards Naruto, until this chapter, in the small part where they ate at Ichiraku Ramen together.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I know y'all expected FIREBRAND, but I like to focus on my other stuff from time to time.**

 **In this part of Naruto's story, he meets some side characters from To Love-ru, one character being his master and eventual love interest.**

* * *

Waking up, Jiraiya yawns out loud before rubbing his eyes and looking over his surroundings. He noticed that Naruto and Ayane were not in their sleeping bags, and Ryu was busy practicing his swordsmanship.

"Good morning Master Jiraiya," said Ryu, stopping his training.

"Same to you Ryu...Where's Naruto and Ayane?" he asked the Hayabusa Ninja. Ryu tells the sage that he didn't see them when he woke up. Wondering where they were, Jiraiya decides to look for them while Ryu hunts for breakfast.

 **With Naruto**

Opening his eyes, Naruto was met with a sleeping Ayane, her face close to his. He wanted to scream in surprise, but the blond figured that it wasn't a good idea since he didn't want to interrupt the girl. Looking down, he noticed his right hand groping her left breast, and his left hand feeling her butt.

 **"How did I get into this position!? This is bad, this is bad! If she wakes up now, she'll surely beat the crap out of me. It's okay Naruto, this situation can be avoided. All you have to do is remove your hands off her assets and-"** Naruto's fears were realized when the girl slowly opened her eyes. Noticing something wrong, Ayane looks down and sees the position she and Naruto were in, turning red in the face as she processed everything.

"You..."

"You?"

"YOU PERVERRRRRRRRRT!" Naruto's screams could be heard as Ayane punched him. Jiraiya, having heard the girl yelling at his apprentice, decides to walk the other way and let Naruto deal with his own problems.

 **After Breakfast**

 **10:45 am**

"I SAID I WAS SORRY!" Naruto told Ayane, the latter ignoring him as she, Ryu, and Jiraiya walked in front of him.

"That won't resolve what happened!"

"What did happen?" asked Jiraiya. Ayane, red in the face, looked away and told him nothing happened. "If you say so...We should be able to make it to Konoha soon."

"The faster we get there, the better. I don't want to see this pervert again, nor do I want to be his friend." Naruto's eye twitched when Ayane called him a pervert again.

"That's a shame really," said Naruto.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you were very interested in my story, were you not?" This caught Ayane by surprise. As she recalled, she wanted him to continue his story when they woke up. Now that she decided to ignore and break ties with him once they arrived in Konoha, he wasn't going to let her listen to his story.

"Oh? You told her your story?" Jiraiya asked Naruto, amused.

"Yeah, and she was really looking forward to hearing more before I fell asleep on her." Ayane simply blushed and tried to ignore the blond.

"So you don't plan on telling her the rest?"

"Nah, I'm sure she doesn't have an interest in it anymore. I was about to tell her about my training and-"

"OKAY FINE, I ACCEPT YOUR APOLOGY!" Naruto smirked, knowing he got her.

"Are you sure you're sorry?"

"I am," Ayane replied with a serious expression on her face.

"Prove it." When asked how she was supposed to prove that she accepted it, to her horror, Naruto wanted her to tell him, "I guess I overreacted a little. For that, I'm sorry for hitting you. Please forgive me, Naruto-sama", but in a cute but embarrassed manner."

"I'm not saying that. No way in hell." Ayane told the blond.

"Then the story is discontinued, forever out of your-"

"Okay fine!" The four stop so Ayane can properly tell Naruto what he wanted her to say. "I...I guess I-"

"Wait, hold on!" Naruto pulls out his phone and pressed record on his camera app.

 **"Way to go Naruto!"** Jiraiya thought to himself as he gave his apprentice a thumbs up.

"You're going to record this!?"

"Yeah, after all, this is a rare sight that I wish to keep for myself. A memento."

 **"You bastard, you're enjoying this."** Ayane thought to herself. "Just promise me that you won't show anyone that recording."

"Ninja promise, now please do your thing, and make sure it's believable." To Naruto's surprise, Ayane put on a genuine cute and embarrassed look on her face as her hair covered her eyes.

"I...I guess I o-o...overreacted a little...For that..." Naruto couldn't help but turn red in the face as Ayane continued.

 **"She's a natural!"** Naruto thought to himself.

I'm sorry for hitting you. P-Please, forgive me...Na-Na...Naruto-sama..." After finishing, she angrily asked if it was good enough, only to see a red-faced Naruto staring at her, having finished recording her.

"...I think I love you." This caught the girl off guard as Jiraiya and Ryu sport surprised looks on their faces.

"What...What did you say!?"

"I-I didn't say anything! You didn't hear anything!" he told her. "...I need 2 minutes." Wondering what Naruto meant by two minutes, Jiraiya watched as his apprentice ran off into the forest.

"I was sure he said something to me," Ayane said to herself. She was in so much shock that she couldn't remember what the blond said to her. Looking at the girl, Jiraiya told himself, "Must be great being young..."

"What the hell are you going on about?"

When asked what Naruto told her, Ryu turned away and told her he didn't hear him say anything. Far away from the three, Naruto proceeded to bang his head on a large tree several times, thinking to himself how a serious girl like Ayane could act so cute with little effort. Sure she was acting to be cute, but it was so convincing!

 **Two minutes later**

The four resumed their little journey to Konoha as Ayane asked what Naruto was doing in the forest.

"Nothing you should know..." Thank goodness his healing was good, or else he'd have to explain the non-existing head wound.

"...Are you going to finish where you left off? I did do that humiliating apology of yours."

"Hmm? Oh, right...My story. Continuing where I left off, two weeks after my birthday, Jiraiya came into my life and decided to take me with him as his apprentice. I still remember it very clearly..."

 **Past**

 **Hokage Office**

"Am I hearing this right?" asked the young Naruto, wide-eyed after hearing what the Third Hokage just told him.

"Yes, you'll be leaving the village to train with Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin...one of my three apprentices."

"This is very convenient, yet...How does this Jiraiya know of me? I don't even know him."

 **"If only you knew Naruto..."** If the Hokage wanted to tell him, he would. But since the blond was too young to understand, he simply told him, "I informed him of your...past, as well as your change in behavior. He was pretty eager to see you." Just as the Third Hokage finished, Jiraiya enters the office.

"Hey Master, long time no see."

"Jiraiya..." Looking at the toad sage, Naruto tells the Hokage that he reeks of alcohol and women.

"You must be Naruto, nice to meet you," Jiraiya told the 9-year old blond as he offered to shake his hand while giving him a smile.

"I don't want to shake your hand. Who knows where that's been." Jiraiya couldn't help but laugh at Naruto's "joke" as he lightly patted his back before telling him, "I think you and I will get along just fine..."

 **"He touched me with it anyways..."**

"Believe it or not Naruto, Jiraiya is a very powerful ninja. He may even be stronger than me."

"Stronger than you?" asked a surprised Naruto, directing his attention to the Third Hokage.

"Yes, that I can tell you. Jiraiya, make sure you take good care of him." Jiraiya happily nodded to his master before telling Naruto to go home and pack.

 **Present**

"Where did you think his hand has been?"

"Really? That's the question you want answered?" asked a surprised Naruto. "You know, inside a woman's..."

"What're you..." Realizing what Naruto meant, Ayane turns to Jiraiya and calls him a pervert as she points at the toad sage.

"Geez Naruto, did you have to be that honest?" Jiraiya asked his apprentice.

"Honesty is one of the many steps towards friendship," Naruto replied.

"And one of the many towards breaking one." Jiraiya countered. **"He's definitely not his father..."**

"So, what happened next?"

 **Past**

 **Umino Residence**

"You're leaving tomorrow!?" yelled a surprised Iruka as Naruto prepared dinner for them as usual.

"Yeah, for over 4 years, maybe less, and then I'll be back," he replied with a smile as he added sliced daikon into the broth. He was making tonjiru, a hot pork soup.

"You're really happy about this."

"Of course I am. Three years away from here to train is like a vacation to me." Hearing this from Naruto, Iruka felt sad. Sure, the blond was only going to be gone for 3 years, but he grew attached to Naruto, seeing him as his little but mature brother.

"Will you miss me and the others?" As soon as he asked the question, Iruka heard the doorbell ring. Opening it, he is surprised to see Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Hinata, Shino, and Neji at the door, asking if Naruto was home since he invited them for dinner. This surprised the adult, who went back to the kitchen to see Naruto's reaction.

"If I didn't, I wouldn't have invited them for dinner and a sleepover." Seeing Naruto change ever since he took him in brought tears to Iruka's eyes as he went to the blond and hugged him.

"YOU'RE SUCH A GOOD KID NARUTO! I'M PROUD OF YOU! NOT ONLY DO YOU HAVE FRIENDS, YOU HAVE PEOPLE YOU CARE FOR NOW!"

"Oi, let go, the pot's still boiling." Everyone happily ate dinner at the table as they talked about their day and asked Naruto what he was looking forward to seeing outside of Konoha. His simple answer was, "Guess."

"There's not a lot to go by when guessing. But, judging by the news of superheroes in costumes that you enjoy watching, you want to meet these Avengers?"

"You know me so well Shikamaru. The hard part of that would be how to meet them. I can't just walk over to their place and say, "Hey, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, I'm a huge fan" or, "I want to be an Avenger someday, you think I can be one when I get older and have superpowers?", you know what I mean."

"You really want to be a hero," Ino added. "Does that mean that you plan on wearing colorful underpants and a cape?"

"I don't know about underpants, but capes feel like a hassle."

"Naruto, I don't think you'll have a chance to meet people like them. At least not yet. Don't forget that you're going out to train with Jiraiya." Iruka informed the young blond, who assured the former that he knows that his training is important and that he'll stay focused on it.

"Do you plan to eat all sorts of different foods while you're away?" asked a curious Choji.

"That Jiraiya guy said that we'd be in a country called Japan for the first two years, and then after that, we'll be exploring America, and then after that, we're going to Europe for a week and then visit Japan again before coming back here." As Naruto talked with the others, Hinata had a look of sadness to her. He was going to be gone for about 4 years. Not only would she miss him, but she would also have to think about all the girls that he'd meet on the way. What if he takes an interest in a girl out of the Hidden Leaf and becomes a reason for him to not come back to the village? Hinata snapped out of her thoughts when Naruto took notice of this and asked if she was okay.

"Oh, yes I'm okay," she assures her friend. After eating, Naruto and Hinata decided to play shogi together while the others played video games in the TV Room.

"Hey, Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"When you're away...do you think we can still keep in contact?" she asked him. "It's not like I'll be alone in the village. After all, I'm friends with Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, and Shino...It's just that I-"

"You consider me your best friend, and you'll feel very lonely when I'm not here despite having the others to accompany you?" he interrupted, surprising Hinata. "I may not be available for a whole day, but I can make time to chat with you before I go to bed. Want me to show you something?" In his room, Naruto had introduced Hinata to **Facebook**.

"With this, we can keep each other posted on a daily basis. And if you want to talk to me, you can use the messenger to call me or do a chat." Getting the idea of how Facebook worked, Hinata smiled when Naruto offered to help her make an account and add her as a friend.

 **Present**

"You have a Facebook?" Ayane asked in disbelief, with Naruto answering with a yes, and that he also had a Twitter. "Even Pervy Sage has them. How else would he communicate with fans who read his books?"

"Unbelievable, you two use actually use those."

"Well what do you use?" he asked, Ayane telling him she rather not be those people who have any form of social media account.

"How would I contact you if I don't have your number or any form of communication to contact you with?" he asked her, with Ayane telling him that she's old-fashion and that the regular messenger bird works for her. There was another one, but she'd explain it some other time.

"Remind me to make some online accounts for you."

"I don't want one."

"Come on."

"Don't make me punch you." Naruto backs away a bit when she threatens him.

 **Past**

 **Hokage Office**

"Are you out of your mind Hiruzen!? Danzo yelled at his old squadmate, with Konoha Council members Homura and Koharu behind him staying silent. "You're letting the Nine-Tailed Fox leave the village!"

"Is that a problem Danzo?"

"Of course! We can't let him leave the village! Especially when it means exposing him to our enemies!"

"I agree with Danzo, once he sets foot out of the village, Naruto Uzumaki will be exposed to the other villages," Koharu added. "Kumogakure will be the most ready to grab him."

"They would try, only to fail."

"And why is that Hiruzen?" asked Koharu.

"Because where they're going, they wouldn't dare follow them."

 **Umino Residence**

 **Naruto's Room**

Naruto couldn't sleep at all. Not only was he leaving the village to see the world, he was going to train under Jiraiya, the Third Hokage's student, who may be stronger than the old man. When he remembers Hinata telling him that she'd be sad to see him go, he lightly smiled.

 **Morning**

As Naruto put on his backpack and shoes, he turns to see Iruka approaching him, asking if they can grab some ramen at Ichiraku's before he meets with Jiraiya.

"Sure..."

 **Ramen Ichiraku**

As the two ate ramen together, Iruka kept looking at Naruto as he ate his ramen. Naruto was well aware that he would miss him, but he wanted to do more for the blond ninja. When he was about to leave through the door, he wanted to hug him, considering him family but didn't know if he'd want one from someone who originally disliked him.

"Iruka?" Snapping back to reality, he sees the blond looking at him, wondering what was on his mind. "If you want to say something, go ahead."

"It's just that...you're a bit too serious Naruto."

"It's nothing new, I've always been like this, whether I look like it or not," he replied as he paid for their ramen, to Iruka's surprise.

"Naruto, are you sure you-"

"It's the least I can do for now after living under your roof." he interrupted before walking out of the restaurant, with Iruka surprised at this. "Are you coming or not?"

"S-Sure."

 **Village Gate**

Walking towards the village entrance, Naruto finds Jiraiya having a small chat with Hinata, Shikamaru, and Shino. They had asked several questions, like why his hair is white, why he smells like alcohol, and what he does for a living. Noticing them approaching, Jiraiya waves hello to them before asking Naruto if he's ready to go.

"Yeah, I am. Just let me say some things to my...friends." Directing his attention towards Shikamaru, he tells him to make sure that Choji doesn't get into trouble, and to make sure he eats healthy from time to time. With a smile, Shikamaru tells him to not worry, and that he's the second most responsible student in their class, Naruto being third, due to his attitude.

Turning to Shino, he tells him to take care of himself and to help Hinata when she needs it. "Since you're one of the only people who I consider a friend, I can do that much for you." Smiling, Naruto fist bumps with him before turning to Hinata.

"Hinata, I know you can become strong, you just need to work hard and not give up. I know you can do it. Don't doubt yourself anymore. You've done that too much. There will be a time where you show others the you you never thought was inside of yourself," he told her as he puts an assuring hand on her shoulder. "When it comes, I'd like to fight you."

"You'd like to...fight me?" asked a surprised Hinata.

"I never had the pleasure of saying those words to anyone. The only reason I'm telling you those words is that...you're my best friend." Hearing him call her his best friend made Hinata's face turn red.

 **"I'm his best friend..."**

"I look forward to that day, Naruto," she replied, sharing a smile with the blond, her blush never leaving her face.

"Alright, I said all I needed to say. Let's-"

"Naruto..." Turning around, he told Iruka it was about time he spoke up, admitting that he was waiting for him to say something. To his surprise, he hugged the blond. This was not what he was expecting. "You're a very weird kid, that I know about you. You're always serious, you act like an adult when you should be acting like a kid, you can be annoying sometimes, mainly when you have answers to almost everything, and you're full of crap as well. However...I'll miss having you around my place for a while." Letting go of Naruto, he tells Jiraiya to take care of him.

"Don't worry, I'm good at looking after kids. I've babysat before."

"I doubt that." With another smile and a wave, Naruto left with Jiraiya as Iruka, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Shino waved goodbye.

 **Present**

"You think she's gotten stronger ever since you left the village?"

"I have no doubt in my mind," said Naruto.

"So when IS the time you and her fight?" asked Ayane.

"When it's time for the Chunin Exams I guess. We still need to get our headbands and earn experience from missions," he answered, sighing after. "Back to the story, it felt nice to ride in a plane for the first time, especially when it wasn't powered by chakra, and Japan was great. The first 3 days, Pervy Sage allowed me to explore Shibuya, Tokyo, and Akihabara. It was like I stumbled upon my own personal paradise. I wouldn't mind going back there, and I wouldn't mind living there."

"After your 3 days of exploring, did you start training with the Pervert Sage?"

"I was supposed to, but-"

"But I had to postpone it until I was done with my latest novel." Jiraiya interrupted.

"You postponed his training to finish a novel?" asked Ayane. The sage informs her that the books he wrote were very popular in Japan and in the U.S., gathering an impressive amount of fans and spawning a franchise that included manga and animated movies and live-action films, as well as T-Shirts and novelty toys.

"So while he worked on his latest book, he arranged another person to train me."

 **Past**

 **Jiraiya's Apartment and Work Studio**

 **Tokyo, Japan**

 **Noon**

"What do you mean you're going to be busy for a while?" asked Naruto, an annoyed look on his face.

"I need to get this novel done before the deadline. If I don't, a lot of fans will get angry and disappointed," he answered as he worked on his novel. "I already promised my editor I'd work on it during this month."

"What about my training?" Jiraiya tried to tell Naruto to go out exploring, but Naruto wasn't having it. He wanted to get stronger so that he can keep his promise to Hinata and prove his village wrong. "Can't you skip one day?"

"No Naruto, I can't," he replied, not paying attention to the young blond.

"You suck Pervy Sage!"

"Yeah yeah..."

"If you're going to be working on that novel for a whole month, you should at least find me another person who can train me!" This surprised Jiraiya, who told Naruto that it was a really smart idea. "It's not a smart idea, its common sense," he added, crossing his arms as he narrowed his eyes and looked away.

"...Come on, let's take a taxi," he told Naruto as he got up to get dressed.

"What about your work?"

"I can spare a good two hours. Besides, I was just invited to lunch with an old friend of mine. Also, grab your things, because you're going to be living with him and his daughter." Naruto turned to the sage and raised a brow when he told him that.

 **Sainan Town, Japan**

 **Tenjouin Mansion**

Getting out of the taxi, he looks up at the mansion in front of them as he wondered who lived in it.

Ringing the doorbell, Jiraiya and Naruto wait for someone to open the door. Once it opens, they are welcomed by a girl a year older than Naruto. She had brown eyes and hair, which had a ponytail with a blue scrunchie. Her face had no expression as she asked if they had business with Mr. Tenjouin. Once she looked up at Jiraiya, she looked surprised to see him.

"Jiraiya-sama?"

"Oh, Rin, it's been a while. I see you've grown taller. How's Saki?"

"She was sick yesterday, but she's better now," she answered before asking him why he was visiting.

"Saki's father invited me for lunch. I also need you to train my apprentice here." Naruto's eyes widened as he turned to Rin, wondering what the sage was thinking. This girl, Rin, was going to be his master for a whole month?

 **Present**

"Another girl?" Ayane asked, narrowing her eyes. "And you were living with her for a whole month?"

"Well, it was more than a month, and I was living at Saki's, but yeah," he answered.

"During his first night there, Naruto actually fell in love with her. When I asked him why his face was red, he told me he had allergies." Jiraiya told the purple-haired kunoichi as he laughed. This made Naruto turn red in embarrassment.

"You knew!?"

"Of course I knew, I'm not an idiot Naruto."

"You had a crush on her?" asked a surprised Ayane, looking a bit jealous.

"Y-Yeah, I developed a crush on her! At the time, she looked good with the moonlight shining on her face. It made her look breathtaking and..." As he said it, he noticed amused looks from Jiraiya and Ryu, making him turn even redder. "I'll just continue the story!"

 **Past**

"She's going to be my master?" Jiraiya simply said yes.

"Rin Kujou, nice to meet you."

"Y-Yeah..." Naruto replied in disbelief.

"Make sure to take good care of him and his training okay?"

"Very well. Come with me." As Rin went on ahead, Naruto asked Jiraiya why he'd make a girl, who was the same age as him, his master.

"Believe it or not, Rin's skill, if I were to rate it, is considered Jonin-level, especially in swordsmanship."

"I doubt that..."

 **Tenjouin Garden**

Meditating...They were meditating. For over an hour. While Rin was still and in tune with her surroundings, Naruto had a look of restlessness, as he clenched his teeth in annoyance.

"What are we doing meditating!?" he yelled. "Pervy Sage was full of it!" he told the girl as he got up to go give Jiraiya a piece of his mind. By now he was still having lunch with Saki's Father. That was until Rin stopped him by grabbing his hand while still in the lotus position.

"You doubt me, a simple girl?"

"Of course, you're just having me sit and do nothing," Naruto answered back.

"It's not doing nothing. This is part of your training, to take things slow, to improve your body through meditation and concentration." As she explained the reason for their meditation, she gets up and tells Naruto to get ready to fight her.

"Fight you? Really? I may not look like it, but I'm very strong." Naruto told Rin as the latter got into a fighting pose.

"Really, then prepare for disappointment." As Naruto threw a punch, Rin effortlessly avoids it before grabbing it and throwing the surprised blond over her shoulder.

"How-"

"What's wrong? I thought you were very strong." Rin told him, her expression remaining unchanged as she looked down on him. Annoyed, he gets up and tries again to land another hit on her, only to fail and receive a karate chop to the back of his neck, knocking him back down. This goes on for half an hour. By then, Naruto had several bruises on his body, his clothes were a bit dirty, and he looked tired. Rin remained untouched and still had a lot of energy to spare.

"Next time, I'll-"

"Give it up. You can't beat me," she told him right then and there. "You underestimated me, that's why you lost."

"How...How are you able to beat me? I don't get it. I trained since I was 5, I don't get it."

"Because your strength comes from being alone." Naruto didn't understand what she meant when she said it came from being alone.

"What do you mean?"

"You trained yourself to achieve the strength you have now. It's limited to just you. I got some, if not most of my training from my father, and from others around me. Because of them, I am stronger than you, more skilled, and refined. By only relying on yourself, you'll eventually lose every fight that comes to you. Also, from what I can tell from our exchange, and our small talks, you never lost in a fight before, have you?" Naruto simply nodded.

"Because of that, you also found yourself unbeatable, a bit arrogant even, and that's bad. Without failure, one can't hope to learn and improve. Without long periods of preparation, one rushes in without thinking, and victory is lost to them. What's more, your control over your own power and stamina are lacking. The meditation we were doing earlier was to help improve your control over your own mind, energy, and body. To get strong, you must first learn to improve your control over yourself." she told him.

"If you rush things in your goal of becoming strong, you will stumble, and you will fall. Patience is a powerful teacher Naruto, and you shouldn't doubt it. A lot of people tend to forget about it. I don't want you to be one of those people. Keep what I told you in mind while you're training under me and Jiraiya-sama." Finished with her lesson, Rin offers a helping hand. Sighing a bit, he was about to take it until she moved her hand away, confusing him.

"Tell me you lost first." Naruto sported a "Seriously?" face when she told him that. "This is also a part of your training. Now admit your defeat."

"...Fine, I lost. I can't win against you." Satisfied, the stoic girl helped him up on his feet. "This is all I'm doing for you today. Get cleaned up and dressed. Since you'll be living here for a while, your stay isn't free. You'll be helping out 5 days a week, mainly from 3 pm until 8 pm." This shocked Naruto as Rin took out a butler uniform and handed it to him. "Oh, and before you go, you'll refer to me as Kujou-senpai."

 **Present**

Ayane couldn't help but laugh as Naruto had an annoyed look on his face.

"You...You were a butler! And you got your ass kicked by a girl!"

"I wasn't staying there for free you know. And I already told you I was a whole lot different from back then."

"And that's why it's hilarious!" After a full minute of laughter, Ayane stopped and allowed Naruto to continue his story. Before he could speak, she starts laughing again, making him sigh as he waited for her to stop for another minute. Finally, she gave him the okay.

 **Past**

Naruto did everything from cleaning the windows to vacuuming the floors and cleaning the bathrooms. He even did their laundry. To his embarrassment, he found out that Rin was an early bloomer when he found her bra in one of the laundry baskets. As day turned to night, Naruto eventually found himself working in the kitchen as tonight's chef.

 **Dinnertime**

"Dinner is served," Naruto told Saki as he presented to her Italian Pot Roast **(STRACOTTO ALLA FIORENTINA)**. She, Rin, and their friend Aya thank him as they each take a bite. Their eyes sparkle a bit as they each compliment his cooking and tell him his cooking was delicious.

"Did you make this yourself?" asked a surprised Rin, Naruto simply nodding. "Perhaps we should have you cook the meals during your monthly stay here. You have amazing talent in the culinary arts."

"I'm not looking to be a chef, but I appreciate the compliments," he told them before leaving to continue his (forced upon) butler duties.

"Hidden Leaf Ninja to Butler..." Sighing, Naruto continues on with the night. "I should learn to use clones before I return to Konoha..."

 **Later**

 **Tenjouin Garden**

"You okay?" asked Rin, finding an exhausted Naruto lying on the bench in the gazebo.

"This mansion...is huge. I thought rich girls like Saki had several maids and servants to help her every day."

"She does, but today they had a day off, which was why you were the only one doing the chores." As an act of appreciation for Naruto's help, Rin lays his head on her lap, surprising him and making him feel embarrassed. "You didn't complain at all when you were doing the chores."

"I'm used to doing them, at least to a smaller extent that didn't end up with me being this tired."

"Was it when you were still in Konoha?" Naruto's eyes widened when the girl mentioned the Hidden Leaf. "Believe it or not, my ancestors were part of the ninja nation. The Kujous, one of the many famous samurai clans from the Land of Iron, had enough of the war and bloodshed and left it all behind to live in peace outside of it. I was never born there, but I heard great stories about it from my father, who heard it from his. Someday, I'd like to go see where the Kujous came from..."

"And here I thought you were just an ordinary girl not too long ago..." he told her. "To think that you're related to a legendary clan of samurai."

"Looks can be deceiving Naruto. Speaking of looks being deceiving, remember to never underestimate your opponents Naruto, no matter what they look like or how they act. It'll help you to remember that in the long run."

"I'll remember that." Looking at the full moon, Rin tells the blond to look at it and tell her what he thinks of it. Taking time to look at it, he told her it looked beautiful. Looking at it, his mind felt calm and at peace. It felt strange, but he didn't mind it. He never had this feeling when he was in the Hidden Leaf Village. As looked at Rin, he saw her form a smile on her face as she looked at the moon, turning red as the moonlight shined on her. Looking down, she asked him why his face was red. Looking away, he told her he didn't know what she was talking about as he got up and decided to head for bed.

"I'll see you tomorrow Kujou-senpai."

"Good night, Naruto." Blushing once more, he quickly heads inside as Rin gets up to head inside as well.

 **Guest Room**

 ** _"Why is your face red Naruto?"_**

"It's nothing Pervy Sage, just...allergies."

 ** _"Must be serious. So how was your training?"_** asked Jiraiya.

"It was rough, for the most part...but..."

 _ **"But..."**_

"Kujou-senpai is a good teacher. She's rough when it comes to combat, kicking my ass several times without breaking a sweat, and she's very honest when it came to explaining what I lacked. But she also gave me some important things to remember." he added. With a smile, Jiraiya tells him he knew that Rin would be the perfect teacher for him.

 _ **"Make sure you don't give her any trouble okay?"**_ Naruto simply tells the sage that he won't, and to make sure he takes doesn't slack off on writing his novel. As soon as he's finished with talking to Jiraiya, the blond decides to contact Hinata and tell her of his day.

 **Present**

"So did you tell her? That you loved her?" While the whole story was still building up to his training with Jiraiya, Ayane wanted to know more about him and the Rin girl Naruto liked. Why? No one but her knew.

"I'm not going to tell you right away. That'd kill the build-up." he replied. After telling her that, Naruto and Ayane stopped walking once Ryu and Jiraiya stopped in front of them.

"We're here," said Ryu as he, Jiraiya, and their apprentices looked over the Hidden Leaf Village.

"Konohagakure..." Naruto was home.

* * *

 **Believe it or not, Naruto's first master was a girl. Why was this? Jiraiya is a novelist, so he has his own personal life, which interferes with Naruto's training.**

 **I really disliked Sakura being Naruto's crush. She was pretty bitchy when I first saw her. When it came to Road to Journey to Now, I needed to find someone else to take her place. At first I wanted Ayane to be Naruto first crush, but she was too good of a tragic character to use so when I was introduced to To Love-ru and (eventually) watched and read episodes and chapters focused on Rin's character, I fell in love with her, not because of the looks, but because of her sense of maturity. Rin was also the perfect character I was looking for: A pony-tailed brunette swordswoman who could give others a run for their money. With not a lot known about her, it gave me a lot of creative freedom for how I wanted her to be, taking inspiration from Daredevil, Danganronpa, and Ruroni Kenshin.**

 **With Rin, she will teach Naruto the importance of patience and the need to never underestimate his opponents. She also teaches him the art of Mushin, which is a Japanese mental state that requires a person's mind to be free from thoughts of anger, fear, or ego during combat or everyday life. There'll be more that she'll teach him, but I'll be keeping that to myself. Eventually, Naruto will fight her with everything he's got once they're both 11 (I think). While she may not look like it now, she will be of some importance in Part 3.**

 **Next chapter, Naruto will continue his story during lunch and so on. Maybe Hinata will join, who knows? In it, it'll continue his training with Rin, aka Kujou-senpai. Also, Jiraiya may attempt to begin** **his training, only for to find out that during his month at Saki's Mansion, Naruto has learned more from Rin than he could from him and will have the blond stay at Saki's for another 3 months, with the Uzumaki telling him he sucks. After all, Rin has full knowledge of simple shinobi skills, like water walking, tree climbing, shuriken jutsus, kenjutsu, archery, and more. I will have Naruto train with Jiraiya, just not for a good two chapters or so. Maybe I'll bullshit it and make it just one chapter, maybe even skip the whole thing if I want to wrap it up and avoid fillers.**

 **I may make a joke about Naruto wanting to turn back, in order to show off his sense of humor.**


End file.
